A major foreign company has bought documents to take part in a tender for awarding a licence for oil and natural gas exploration in the Bulgarian section of the Black Sea, energy ministry Delyan Dobrev said.
Bids for the licence can be placed until May 27, the ministry said in a statement.
In October, the Bulgarian government decided to open a procedure for awarding a five-year licence for oil and natural gas exploration in the 4,032 square kilometre Block 1-22 Teres. In the event of commercial discovery, the concessionaire will be automatically granted permission to produce from the field.